Stronger
by Whoosh918
Summary: Hinata is alone again and must find the strength in herself to move on. ONE SHOT ONLY. I PROMISE. For those who were disappointed with Heart of the Byakugan.


A/N: This is a response to all those who felt that Heart of the Byakugan was far too sad. Yeah, I thought it was pretty sad, too, but I kind of liked it. It was an ending to a situation. But I do agree that Hinata has quite a bit of strength about her. So here is a sort of alternate scenario. It's still pretty sad, but it shows, IMHO, the kind of things Hinata is capable of.

Oh… and apparently, HIASHI is her father. Hizashi is her late uncle. My apologies.

And in no way to I ship Naruto x Moegi. It's just random. Really. But I thought that it would be far too cruel if Naruto got back together with Sakura. Nor am I usually a Hinata x Kiba shipper, but it can be cute.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own any of the characters of Naruto. The plot is my own, but the basis belongs to one very lucky Masashi Kishimoto.

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Stronger

_Of all the times we shared together, none will ever fade from my mind. But our love is not immortal…_

"Good bye, Naruto-kun," she whispered somberly. Tears brimmed around her violet eyes and slid down the pale skin of her cheeks.

He could not hear her. He was standing before the altar of the temple with Moegi by his side. Yes, that same strange Moegi who always tagged along with Konohamaru. Yet she had grown into a lovely young woman and a lovely bride for Naruto. And he was clearly very happy that he had found one such as her with whom to share his life for the rest of time.

---

It only hurt Hinata all the more when she realized that the one to make him happy was not her. They had tried to stay together. Was it love, she often wondered to herself, as she recalled the days they walked the streets of Konoha, hand in hand, as she rested her head upon his shoulder. But in the end, it was nothing more than her childish fantasies founded upon her admiration. Nothing more. Admiration alone would not keep them together in the face of ridicule and a demanding family.

"Please, let's try one more time, Hinata-chan," he begged. Naruto held her hands with his own and tried to make her stay with him under the swings where they met so many times. "We can make it work. I'll be a stronger man."

Hinata only shook her head. He was not saying these things out of love, but out of pity that he could not truly desire her companionship. "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. It wasn't meant for us."

She ran from that place where she kept so many memories. Her heart felt as though it had stopped beating. For months, she refused the light of day to enter her heart. Hinata delved into her studies and training to keep her mind from returning to thoughts love. But she could only strain herself for so long before the blond nin's smiling face came into her mind and sent her sprawling into depression. She threw herself upon the floor of the dojo and sobbed until her eyes puffed with redness and her throat was hoarse from sobbing.

Her friends and family could do nothing to console her. Their words hit the empty shell of her body. Nothing could penetrate to her soul. The only thing that finally registered in her mind happened several months later when she spotted Naruto and Moegi under the shade of Ichiraku's ramen stand. Their fingers were entwined as they sipped the broth of the delicious stew.

Hinata walked slowly through Konoha, contemplating all that had occurred. She passed the academy, and there it was, as though beckoning her. The swings quietly remained under the tall trees of the playground. The swing set sat under the shade of the leaves, guarded from the bright sun of the day. A light breeze helped the seat to sway slowly. She smirked. In all of this madness, this seemed to be the calmest place of all. Hinata sat cautiously, as if someone, expecting her to be lured to the place, had set a trap for her. Yet nothing happened, and she sat there for the rest of the afternoon.

She returned to that place almost every day after she finished her training. Sometimes she was accompanied by friends, but she usually came alone. It was odd, yet she was completely at peace, moreso than she had been for the past two months. And it did not surprise her when she spotted Naruto, hands in his pockets, slowly walk towards her with a mixed look of surprise and understanding.

"I haven't been able to come here for the past three months now," he admitted.

She pressed the tips of her fingers together. She would always be just a little self-conscious. "It used to be your place of solitude. Now, it's mine." After a second, she hesitated and added slowly, "Naruto-kun." No hard feelings. That's what those two simple words translated to. She gestured for him to sit, and he obliged without hesitation. "You don't have to feel pity for what happened," she said quietly. "I know I'm a pretty weak person. It isn't easy to want someone like that."

Naruto glared at her. "Always the same old self-deprecating Hinata. You don't give yourself enough credit. We're not genin anymore." He stood before her and pointed a finger on her forehead. "And you are not bound to the fate of failure," he said. "Konohamaru and Udon are treating me to dinner. I'll see you."

He turned and waved as he walked toward Ichiraku's. However, just before he was beyond her sight, he shifted his head a little so he could see her out of the corner of his eye. "You know, I did love you."

Hinata smiled. "Yes. And now you love Moegi," she replied without a single hint of bitterness in her voice. Naruto nodded and continued.

As she watched him walk from her, a thought tugged at the back of mind. Words that had no form or order began to take shape, but she could not understand them quite yet. Three years passed, and Hinata took her place as the Hyuuga clan leader with Neji as her trusted friend and advisor. Her family was her greatest pride, and she was a strong leader. Well. Strong until a letter with lace and ribbon arrived in her office one morning.

"To: The members of the Hyuuga household

You are cordially invited to the wedding of Uzumaki Naruto and…"

Hinata stopped reading. "So will we be attending?" Neji asked from the doorway. Hinata jumped in shock and looked at her cousin.

---

Hinata sat alone at a table during the reception. Gondaime was challenging everyone who would listen to a card game.

"Tsunade-sama, that's quite enough sake!" Shizune yelled frantically. Everyone simply laughed. Meanwhile, Chouji and Ino were secretly trying to tip some sake into Lee's glass of water.

"How troublesome…" Shika muttered as he shook his head at his friends.

Hinata giggled. Some things really never changed. Just then, someone tapped her on the shoulder. She looked up and saw Kiba standing over her with Akamaru standing beside him. "Is anyone sitting here?" he asked her. She shook her head, and Kiba took a place beside her while Akamaru sat in place.

"Enjoying yourself, Kiba-kun?" she asked happily, patting Akamaru's head. The dog had grown quite a bit since their days of childhood, and he could now speak as well, too.

"Mmm. Yeah. But I really think I should be asking that of you," Kiba answered.

Hinata's face turned crimson. "Of course I am enjoying myself. Why wouldn't I be?"

Kiba leaned his elbow against the table and put his cheek on his fist. He sighed. "No reason." He glanced at her every so often and let out a small puff of breath. "You know. There are other people out there besides Naruto who once cared for you. Some of them still do care for you." Akamaru let out a low guffaw, as if he knew understood Kiba's words to mean something that he was not outright admitting. Kiba gave him a smart smack on the snout, which promptly quieted the hound.

He did not quite Akamaru fast enough, however. Hinata smiled shyly. "Thank you, Kiba-kun," she said quietly.

"Yeah… no problem," Kiba muttered embarrassedly, avoiding eye contact with Hinata.

Hinata smiled and felt a red tinge in her cheeks. Just then, Ino spotted the two and came over to say hello. The three of them spoke and joked. Everything was ok. Hinata couldn't recall a time that her heart felt so light. And the words that tried to so hard to form finally took a definite shape in her mind.

_Of all the times we shared together, none will ever fade from my mind. But our love is not immortal, and I will move on in my own way. It will hurt, but the memory of its beauty will only make me…_

"Oy, Hinata-chan!" came a cry from the gate of the Hyuuga estate.

Hinata grabbed her shoes and her backpack as she quickly tied her forehead protector around her neck. "I'm coming!" she called out in reply. She ran down the stairs and passed Neji, who only smiled and shook his head. She opened the door, but stumbled a little into the arms of someone waiting for her. "I guess I'm still a little bad with foot work."

Kiba helped her to stand upright. "Don't lie to me. After learning that divination attack, you've been much better."

She laughed sheepishly. "So what is the mission for today?"

"Barely worthy of a B Rank title, but a job is a job. Come on, let's go." They dashed out, Kiba, Akamaru, and Hinata. And as they left the gates of Konoha, the sun shone through the leaves of the beautiful forest in the surrounding area.

And Kiba smiled at Hinata. Hinata smiled shyly and blushed. She turned away. Maybe Kiba would one day be brave enough to tell her what he felt, but until that day, this was enough. Who knew what tomorrow would bring. Something beautiful, Hinata was certain. She sighed contentedly and thought to herself,

_Of all the times we shared together, none will ever fade from my mind. But our love is not immortal, and I will move on in my own way. It will hurt, but the memory of its beauty will only make me…_

…_Stronger._

End.

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A/N: See? I can be a happy writer. I hope those who weren't fond of HotB like this one better, even if it is a different pairing.

And I hope it can give strength to those of you who are just a little lacking.


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